BLOOD BROTHERS - Burn, Piano Island, Burn

I hated the Eighties. The Nineties were already much better. But it's the new millennium that finally
shows that although the tendency goes back to a soulless rehashing of synth pop standards, there are
also bands that innovate music in a way most people wouldn't have seen possible. The (International)
Noise Conspiracy innovated rock'n'roll all by themselves, while The Mars Volta rewrote the history of
progressive rock. The third really original band I have recently discovered are The Blood Brothers,
and after listening to their debut This Adultery Is Ripe, I wouldn't have
expected something like Burn, Piano Island, Burn.

I have been listening to this album now for a couple of evenings already, and still don't find the
right words to describe the sonic madness portrayed on this album. The band's origins lie in the
screamo core genre, but they have long since left that path to dare totally new realms of sounds never
heard before. In addition to your typical instruments (guitar, bass and drums), you get a lot of
disturbing keyboard sounds, and at times some added glockenspiel and other paraphernalia. I won't say
now that this is not melodic, because there is a strange sense of harmony inherent in the songs, but
it never sounds soothing, and also asks a lot of concentration before you get the emotional reward.
The multi-layered vocals are doing everything from frenetic screaming to post-punk wails, with
occasional melodic bursts that make the ensuing madness even sound more brutal.

You might have read this review in two ways. If you think that what I wrote is negative, then you
probably don't understand that good music needs to challenge the listener, needs to initiate a
paradigm shift. You might as well save your money and spend it on something more easy-listening. On
the other hand, if you like to dive into yet unknown depths of music, then
Burn, Piano Island, Burn is what you have been waiting for. Apart from the
daring experimentation that surpasses 99% of all music released so far, you get a perfect production
by Ross Robinson, adding transparency and power alike, making this one of the few really original and
amazing albums to have been released recently. 10 points!